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I am recovering 4 very old dining room chairs. When removing the 3 layers of fabric on seats, the cushion disintegrated into dust and the seat board is full of staples and nails and seems weak. I can't find any instructions on actually replacing the board. What type of wood/material should I use? What do I need to use to cut them?

I use 1/2" poplar plywood. I suppose even BCX plywood would work, if being a bit more rustic. Avoid the imported junk plywood from the big box stores. These have lots of voids, crumbly layers, tend to warp, and in the same piece can have anywhere from 3 to 9 layers as the plies are just laid up haphazardly. There are other engineered wood products such as MDF and OSB that might work, but I'd prefer something a bit nicer. My thought is that if you are going through the time and expense of re-upholstery, no sense saving a couple of dollars on substandard boards.

As far as cutting, normally there are rounded corners, so I use a jig saw or band saw that can cut curves. You can cut the straight sides on a table saw.

Keith

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